Hello, this is Yuri Makada from the Hakusanroku office. It is now November and the mornings and evenings at the Hakusanroku Campus have become quite chilly, making me feel that winter is coming. Today, I would like to write about the Kutani Ware Overglaze Painting Experience and the Flower Arrangement and Kado Class held in September.

【Kutani Ware Overglaze Painting Experience】　

 On Thursday, September 12th, 2024, Arihiro Kodaka sensei oversaw the Kutani Ware Overglaze Painting Experience. Two instructors from the Ishikawa Prefectural Kutani Ware Technical Institute led this activity.
 First, the instructors explained the characteristics of Kutani ware, how to hold the brush, and the types of colors used.
 Then, the students transferred their pre-prepared designs onto square plates, sketching them in pencil. The designs they prepared were inspired by Japanese themes, such as sea creatures, Mt. Fuji, koi fish, and the kotoji stone lantern at Kenrokuen Garden. This design was tasteful and evocative of the season.
 The painting style used in this session is "Gosaide," a traditional style in Kutani ware. After the initial sketching in pencil, students outlined their designs in a black pigment called “Gosu” and then applied five Japanese pigments (yellow, blue (green), dark blue, purple (brown), and red) to add color. Though initially nervous about outlining and applying these colors, the students gradually gained confidence and worked with increasing enjoyment.
 Once the painting was completed, the pieces were sent for firing, and about a month later, the finished plates were delivered to the students. The plates were amazing. The transformation, with the colors becoming richer and deeper, resulted in beautifully crafted Kutani ware unique to this traditional style.

【Flower Arrangement and Kado Class】

 On Friday, September 13th, the Flower Arrangement and Kado class was held. Kazumi Minamikawa sensei (instructor) led the Flower Arrangement course.
 First, students arranged flowers using roses, chrysanthemums, chili peppers, and leatherleaf ferns. After learning from Minamikawa sensei how to cut the stems and keep the flowers in water, the students placed their flowers on a special sponge to shape their arrangements. Adding chili peppers at various angles, each student created a unique piece in their own style.
 Next after being divided into two groups, students tried their hands at flower arrangement using a flower frog and a water basin to create a full-scale flower arrangement with sunflowers, foxtail millets, St. John’s worts alstro emeria, Japanese fantail willows, and peruvian lilies. Using Minamikawa sensei’s model as a guide, the students created a beautiful display by making holes in straight leaves, bending them around to create curves, and scattering flowers on the surface of the water while bringing out the individuality of the flowers and leaves.
The students' works were displayed at the entrance of the Hakusanroku campus and in common areas, creating a gorgeous atmosphere on campus.

間加田 侑里

 Hello, my name is Yuri Makada from the Hakusanroku office. From Monday, August 26th to Monday September 2nd, 2024, I traveled to Bangkok, Thailand, for a business trip to recruit future ICT students, along with Mr. Tossa Mebusaya sensei, Mr. Rikichi Izumiya, the Deputy Secretary General of the ICT office, and Ms. Rattiya Mebusaya. I had the impression that Thailand would be extremely hot, but since Ishikawa Prefecture also experienced a heatwave of over 35 ℃ the week before, the temperature and humidity were almost the same. I had heard that August is the rainy season in Thailand, characterized by heavy downpours, but fortunately, we were blessed with sunny weather without being caught in any heavy rain.

 From Monday, August 26th to Friday August 30th, 2024, we visited several institutions in Bangkok. Among them were the Bangkok Japanese School, Japanese cram schools, the Japanese Embassy, Kosen Kmutt, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi and its affiliated startup institution (Knowledge Xchange), and Sripatum University. During these visits, we introduced our school, discussed the recruitment of international students and returnees, toured the facilities of each institution, and exchanged opinions on the COOP Project and startup initiatives.

 From Friday, August 30th to Sunday September 1st, the Bangkok Japan Expo 2024 was held. At the Expo, the 45th Bangkok Study Abroad Fair was also held by the Jeducation Bangkok Japan Expo Executive Committee. ICT had a booth at the event. At the Bangkok Japan Expo 2024, many booths showcased various aspects of Japanese culture, such as travel to Japan and Japanese culinary traditions, creating an atmosphere filled with enthusiasm and interest in Japan.
 Many Japanese children living in Thailand, as well as Thai middle school students and their parents, visited the ICT booth. Some families engaged in serious discussions about studying at ICT for over an hour. Additionally, many high school and university students expressed strong interest in KIT, our affiliated school, and numerous questions were asked.
 At the Bangkok Japan Expo 2024, there were a total of 118,104 visitors over 3 days. Many attendees already had an interest in Japan, which created an environment conducive to discussions about Japan and studying abroad. The ICT booth was bustling with visitors from morning until evening, and our team worked together to assist them. We were amazed by the high level of interest from the Thai people in studying in Japan. We hope that this exhibition will lead to increased enrollment at ICT.
 This trip to Thailand was filled with new experiences, making it a very fulfilling time. Unfortunately, I had case of food poisoning and had to visit a hospital in Thailand, which was quite challenging. Despite this, the trip to Thailand was an unforgettable experience.

Yuri Makada

Hello again! It’s me, Domyson Abuan, a Learning Mentor at ICT Hakusanroku campus. I am back with my second journal entry. This time, I have a story to share to mark my first anniversary of working at ICT!

My best friend gifted me a shirt that says, “EPIC FAIL.” At first, wearing something that labels me a failure seemed odd, but I proudly wear it anytime. “EPIC FAIL” has become a popular slang term for funny or ridiculous mishaps, usually made while doing something simple.

 It all started two years ago when the two of us joined a sports event in Ishikawa—wall climbing, BMX, parkour, all packed into one venue! So exciting! We drove a few hours to get there—only to discover that the event was mainly for kids!

 We were the only adults lining up to do parkour with children, looking like two out-of-place chaperones. To make it even funnier, I struggled with the course, and the kids easily beat me! We laughed so much that we dubbed the day an “EPIC FAIL.”

 Despite the mishap, we had a great time, and it became the start of more epic adventures—a race in Hokkaido, firefly squid fishing in Namerikawa, and even backpacking in the Philippines. Every trip brought more epic failures, but with each one, we picked life lessons. My friend gave me the shirt, and it reminded me of how much we’ve learned from those moments.

 Fast forward to August 7th, 2024. I wore my “EPIC FAIL” shirt during ICT Hakusanroku campus’s summer camp, where students from various schools gathered for STEM workshops. The theme of the camp was “Imagineering a dream company aimed at the future we want to see!!”, and I was assigned to introduce the concept. Imagineering blends imagination and technical skills, encouraging students to create innovative solutions for pressing social issues.

 I secretly hoped someone would ask about my shirt so I could tie it into the importance of failure in engineering. But to my surprise (and true to the spirit of an epic fail), all the workshops finished, and no one asked.

 Later that afternoon, while playing badminton with the participants in the gym, I finally got my chance. Three students from Thailand approached me, and one of them, a boy named CJ, noticed my shirt. He giggled and asked why I was wearing it. It was music to my ears! I felt like the universe was behind me, cheering me on to seize the moment.

 I told them about the meaning of the slang. We also discussed that in engineering—and in life—we often encounter failure. To my delight, they were genuinely engaged in the conversation. We discussed how failure proves that we’re trying, taking action, and learning. It pushes our ideas forward, eventually leading to better versions and successful outcomes. One of the boys chimed in saying, "As long as we keep trying, failing is okay." I couldn’t agree more, adding, "And if you’re going to fail while trying, make it epic so you always remember the lessons!"

 That conversation felt like a mission accomplished for the day.

 I saw the boys again later at the workshop venue. They smiled and waved, recognizing me as “the guy with the epic fail shirt.” Even if they didn’t remember my name, I was happy they recalled the conversation we had that night.

On the last day of camp, I was playing the ukulele with Sin, another participant. CJ approached me, holding something in his hands. He gave it to me and said, “This is for you.” He told me he enjoyed our conversation and wanted to give me a gift.

 I was thrilled to know that our talk had resonated with at least one student. As I write this, I’m marking one year of working at ICT. I’m incredibly grateful for moments like these, where we get to share engineering insights with students—lessons I hope will serve them as life skills as they grow.

 Oh, and by the way, CJ’s gift was a pair of traditional Thai pants! I’m sure they’ll go perfectly with my “EPIC FAIL” shirt. I can’t wait to wear the combo at a future workshop.

 Looking ahead, I’m excited to experience more realizations, “EPIC FAIL”, and eventual successes with the school community as we continue striving toward ICT’s goal of fostering global innovators. I’ll be sure to share more stories in future journal entries!

Domyson Abuan, Learning Mentor

 Hello, this is Apirak Sang-ngenchai, the learning mentor. It's been a while since I’ve posted an article. Anyway, I want to share some of the awesome activities we did last semester.

　こんにちは、ラーニングメンターのアピラク・サンゲンチャイです。久しぶりの白山麓ジャーナル投稿です。さて、前年度の後学期に行われたいくつかの活動の中から一部を紹介したいと思います。

 AI is everywhere these days, and it's changing how we do things in all kinds of fields. One interesting area is human activity recognition (HAR), where AI helps people understand and analyze what they are doing based on data from sensors or cameras. Mediapipe, a tool from Google, is super useful for this and is used to develop it in this workshop.

　近年、AI技術の進化により、さまざまな分野に影響をもたらしています。興味深い分野の一つに人間の行動認識（HAR）というものがあります。これはAIがセンサーやカメラのデータを基に、人々の行動を認識し分析する技術です。GoogleのツールであるMediapipe（メディアパイプ）は、この分野で非常に役立つものであり、私達の行ったワークショップの中でも実際に使用したことがあります。今回はその様子を紹介したいと思います。

 Every Friday, the students have an optional learning session. The Learning Mentor holds a variety of workshop to help them learn something outside their regular class topics or to improve their learning skills. I decided to hold a workshop called "Learning Friday," where students got hands-on experience with Google Mediapipe. They learned how to extract body joints using Mediapipe through Python programming, which provided a great way to gain coding experience. The session was highly interactive and fun, allowing everyone to experiment and learn together in a relaxed setting.

 　毎週金曜日は、学生たちが参加を選択できるラーニングセッションが実施されます。授業の学習内容とは異なることを学んだり、学習スキルを向上させるために、ラーニングメンターによって様々なワークショップが開催されます。そこで私は、学生たちが Google Mediapipe を実際に体験できる「ラーニングフライデー」というワークショップを開催することにしました。その中で学生たちは、Pythonプログラミングを通じて Mediapipe を使用し、体の骨格や関節を検出する方法を学びました。これは、コーディングの経験を積むのにとても良い方法となりました。また、このラーニングフライデーは非常に対話的で楽しく、リラックスした雰囲気の中で全員が一緒に実験したり学べる時間を持つことができました。

 Learning to code in AI is really important for students. It not only opens up lots of job opportunities but also helps develop problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. Getting comfortable with AI tools like Mediapipe means students can participate in the latest tech developments. This workshop was a perfect way to help them prepare for the future.

　AIのコーディングを学ぶことはとても重要です。より多くの職業への機会が開かれるだけでなく、問題解決や批判的に考える能力も備わります。そしてMediapipeのようなAIツールに慣れることで、最新の技術開発に参加できるようになります。その学びとしてこのワークショップは、将来へ向けての経験を積むためのとても有意義な時間となりました。

  Haruto Shiraishi, a current 3rd year student who participated in this workshop in the last semester of last school year, He wrote a journal. Please take a look!

　昨年度の後学期に、このワークショップに参加した現在3年生の白石 春翔さんが、白山麓ジャーナルを書きました。どうぞご覧ください！

Apirak Sang-ngenchai
アピラク・サンゲンチャイ

　こんにちは、この「ラーニングフライデー」ワークショップを受講した３年生の白石 春翔です。ここで学習したことや感じたことなどをこのジャーナルにまとめたいと思います。

 Hello, this is Haruto Shiraishi, a 3rd year student who took this "Learning Friday" workshop. I would like to summarize what I learned and felt here in this journal.

　さて、近年AI技術は日々進化しその活用方法も多様化され様々な場面で活用されるようになりました。そんな中、授業の一環でAIを活用し農作物を猿から守るシステムを開発する機会があり、実際にアピラク先生の指導の下、猿と人間それぞれを機械学習させ判別しLINEに通知を送るシステムを構築しました。他にもAIを活用して表情を読み取るなど、長期間で様々な方法で挑戦してきました。

 In recent years, AI technology has been evolving day by day, and its applications have become diversified and are used in various situations. Under the guidance of Apirak sensei, we constructed a system that sends notifications to LINE after machine learning and discriminating between monkeys and humans. We also used AI to read facial expressions, and we challenged ourselves in many other ways over a long period of time.

　これらの活動を通してAIについて興味を持ち、もっと色々な場面で活用できるのではないかと考えました。そこで先生が人間の活動認識（HAR）を利用しヨガのポーズを判別するシステムを制作していたことを思い出しました。この技術には凡用性がありロボットなどにも応用できそうだと感じ、先生にお願いしました。

 Through these activities, I became interested in AI and wondered if it could be used in many more situations. Then, I remembered that my professor had created a system that used human activity recognition (HAR) to identify yoga poses. I felt this technology had potential applications in robotics and other fields, so I asked him to help us.

　実際に学習していく中で難しいと感じたところは100行以上からなるコードを理解する事でした。しかし一つ一つ読み解き、書くことで明確に理解することができました。また、自分でも少しコードを変更したり、様々な画像や動画を使って試す事で理解が深まりました。

 The most difficult part of the course was to understand the code, which consisted of more than 100 lines. However, by reading and writing the code one by one, I was able to understand it clearly, and I was able to deepen my understanding by modifying the code a little myself and experimenting with various images and videos.

　製作段階で終わってしまいましたが、ここで学習したことを活用し、ロボットアームを制御することにも挑戦しました。

 Although it ended up in the production stage, we also tried to control the robot arm using what we had learned here.

　今後はこれらのAI技術を応用し、様々な社会課題の解決に貢献できる製品の開発に取り組んでいきたいと思います。

 In the future, I would like to apply these AI technologies to develop products that can contribute to solving various social issues.

白石 春翔
Haruto Shiraishi

　こんにちは、白山麓高専事務室の間加田 侑里です。2024年6月9日（日）から6月21日（金）にかけて、米国ミズーリ州コロンビア市から6名の高校生が白山麓キャンパスに来校しました。コロンビア市の高校生たちは白山麓キャンパスに滞在し、国際高専の1、2年生と一緒の寮生活を送り、国際高専の学生と同じ授業や他のプログラムに参加した他、白山市でのホームステイ、白山ジオツアー、日本文化体験など、白山市が提供された様々なプログラムに参加しました。
　来日前、コロンビア市の高校生たちはコロンビア市で放送されたテレビ番組で、国際高専のプログラムへの参加についてインタビューを受けています。そちらもご覧ください。https://youtu.be/Xs7dr1fK9UA?si=yukJb_uMGMRCu21l

 Hello, this is Yuri Makada from the Hakusanroku office. Six high school students from Columbia, Missouri, U.S.A. visited Hakusanroku campus from Sunday, June 9th to Friday, June 21st, 2024. The Columbia City high school students stayed at Hakusanroku Campus, lived in the dormitory with 1st and 2nd year students of ICT, and they participated in the same classes with 1st year and 2nd year students and other programs. They also participated in various programs offered by Hakusan City, such as a homestay, a Hakusan Geo-Tour and Japanese cultural experiences.

Prior to their visit to Japan, the Columbia City high school students were interviewed about their participation in the ICT program for a TV program broadcast in Columbia City. If you are interested in seeing this program, here is the link. https://youtu.be/Xs7dr1fK9UA?si=yukJb_uMGMRCu21l

【6月9日（日）～14日（金）】

　コロンビア市の高校生たちは国際高専でのプログラムに参加しました。国際高専の1、2年生たちと共に英語科目や体育科目の授業を受け、1、2年生と交流を深めました。コロンビア市の高校生たちは日本語のレッスンや化学実験、プログラミング、本校のオリジナル工学教育である「エンジニアリングデザイン」などのSTEAM体験なども行いました。
　「エンジニアリングデザイン」では、「外国人が日本に来た際に直面するコミュニケーションの問題を解決する方法」をテーマにアイデアを考え、1、2年生と教職員に向けて発表しました。その後、コロンビア市の高校生たちは日本語による紙芝居「さるかに合戦」を披露しました。1、2年生は、コロンビア市の高校生たちが一生懸命日本で発表される紙芝居に見入っており、その完成度の高さと日本語の上手さに感心し、驚きの表情を浮かべていました。

【Sunday, June 9th - Friday 14th】

 High school students from Columbia City participated in a program at ICT. They took English and Health and Physical Education classes with 1st and 2nd year ICT students. The Columbia City high school students also had Japanese language lessons, chemistry experiments, programming, and STEM experiences such as Engineering Design, our original engineering education program. 
 In Engineering Design classes, the students came up with ideas on “How to Solve Communication Problems that Foreigners Face when They Come to Japan”, and presented their ideas to the 1st and 2nd year ICT students and faculty members. After that, high school students from Columbia City presented Sarukani Gassen, a story from Japanese folklore using Kamishibai or Japanese paper theater. All of the ICT students who attended the performance were very impressed. They watched the Columbia City students with great interest and were amazed by their Japanese language skills.

【6月15日（土）、16日（日）】

　コロンビア市の高校生たちは一緒に行動するバディとなった国際高専1、2年生15名と白山市のプログラムの一つである金沢観光に出かけました。兼六園や金沢城散策、石川県観光物産館で金沢の伝統工芸である「金箔貼り」を体験しました。コンパクトミラーに金箔を貼り、それぞれ思い思いの作品に仕上げました。その後、コロンビア市の高校生たちは白山市のホストファミリーと対面し、1泊2日のホームステイを通してホストファミリーとの交流や日本文化を楽しみました。

【Saturday, June 15th - Sunday, June 16th】

 High school students from Columbia City went on a sightseeing tour of Kanazawa as one of the cultural experiences organized by Hakusan City. They were accompanied by 15 1st and 2nd year students who were their ICT buddies. They walked around Kenrokuen Garden and Kanazawa Castle, and experienced "Gold Leaf Pasting," a traditional Kanazawa craft, at the Ishikawa Local Products Center. They applied gold leaf to compact mirrors, each creating their own unique work of art. The students then met their host families in Hakusan City. They spent one night and two days interacting with them and learning about Japanese culture.

【6月17日（月）～21日（金）】

　コロンビア市の高校生たちは白山市のプログラムに参加しました。白山市は市全域が「白山手取川ユネスコ世界ジオパーク」に認定されており、コロンビア市の高校生は白山麓地域を散策する「ジオツアー」を楽しみました。河内地区「キッズの森 視察ツアー」や、豪雪地帯に暮らす白峰の人々の生活及び限界集落での地域活性化の取り組みを学ぶ「白峰ツアー」、白峰恐竜パークにて化石クリーニング作業体験・館内見学、鳥越中学校で中学生の英語のクラスに参加しました。

　6月20日（木）の夕方、コロンビア市の高校生たちの帰国前日に、白山麓キャンパスで「お別れ会」が開催されました。白山市の関係者や、白山市のホストファミリーが集まり、国際高専の1、2年生・教職員、コロンビア市の高校生・教員たちと共に夕食を楽しみました。お別れのスピーチでは、コロンビア市の高校生から「国際高専に来る前は不安いっぱいでしたが、学生たちがとても優しく歓迎してくれたので嬉しかったです。ありがとうございました。」という温かいメッセージがあり、国際高専の学生からは「2週間という短い間でしたが、たくさんの思い出を作ることができました。国際高専に来てくれてありがとう。素敵な時間を過ごすことができました。」という言葉が送られました。スピーチの最終には涙ぐむ学生たちの姿などから、お互いの絆を感じることができ、心温まる素敵な時間となりました。

　国際高専の1、2年生たちにとってコロンビア市の高校生たちと過ごしたこの2週間は同年代のアメリカ人が話す英語に触れるとともに、異なる文化や価値観を体験できる貴重な経験となりました。今回の寮生活を含め、共に過ごした交流は、異文化への理解促進となったことでしょう。

【Monday, June 17th - Friday, June 21st】

 High school students from Columbia City participated in another program organized by Hakusan City. The entire city of Hakusan is recognized as the "Hakusan-Tedorigawa UNESCO Global Geopark," and the Columbia City high school students enjoyed a "Geo Tour" exploring the Hakusanroku area. They took part in many activities. For example, they participated in a "Kids' Forest Tour" in the Kawachi area, and they also went on the “Shiramine Tour”. On this tour they learned about the lives of the people who live there, how living in a heavy snowfall area affects them, and local revitalization efforts in marginalized communities. They experienced fossil cleaning work and toured the museum at the Hakusan Dinosaur Park Shiramine, and attended English classes for junior high school students at Torigoe Junior High School.

 On the evening of Thursday, June 20th, the day before the Columbia City high school students returned home, a farewell party was held at the Hakusanroku Campus. Officials from Hakusan City and host families from Hakusan City gathered for dinner with 1st and 2nd year students and faculty members of ICT, as well as high school students and teachers from Columbia City. In their farewell speeches, a high school student from Columbia City said, "I was very worried before coming to the ICT, but the students were very kind and welcoming, so I was very happy. Thank you very much.", ICT students said, "although it was only for two weeks, we were able to make many memories. Thank you for coming toI CT. We had a wonderful time." The final part of the speech was delivered by a tearful student. The students were in tears at the end of their speeches, and it was a wonderful and heartwarming time, as we could sense the bond between the students.

 For the 1st and 2nd year students of the ICT, these two weeks spent with high school students from Columbia City were a valuable experience for them learn about different cultures and values, as well as to be exposed to English spoken by Americans of the same age. The exchange experience, including dormitory life, was a good opportunity for them to gain a better understanding of different cultures.

間加田 侑里
Yuri Makada